Digging in the Dirt
by RedNightBird
Summary: Jessica Cunningham is a name on "the List". Jessica and Josef have an extensive history. Orig. published for Mini Madness Chall #1 Moonlight Forever 11/01/08


**Moonlight Mini Madness Challenge #1 (from Moonlight Forever) 11/1/8**

**Title: "Picking Up the Pieces" by Bank1115**

**Starting Paragraph: by francis**

"She ran out of reasons to stay inside. It was way too early but she couldn't contain her excitement anymore. Putting a stray strand of hair back into the clasp she pushed the sliding doors to the garden open and carefully stepped barefoot over the rough tiles of the patio."

Rules:

- 1000 word limit (no-one's going to the guillotine if a few words over!)

- Post date (give specific date - I think deadlines help. Perhaps we can have the post up a few days before it opens to give folks a chance to see it?)

- open genre

- GO! Picking up the pieces

Previously in the world of RedNightBird:

Jessica Cunningham is a name on "the List". Jessica and Josef have an extensive history and when "Jesse" reconnects with Emma Monaghan things go terribly wrong. The two women conspire to submit a "List" to Talbot, a distant cousin of Jesse's. Jesse, in a low moment, had confessed this to Josef. It's a case of who will dominate who, with an NC 17 interludes, including a chair scene.

This story influenced by Peter Gabriel's "Digging in the Dirt"

* * *

She ran out of reasons to stay inside. It was way too early but she couldn't contain her excitement anymore. Putting a stray strand of hair back into the clasp she pushed the sliding doors to the garden open and carefully stepped barefoot over the rough tiles of the patio.

_**This time you've gone too far…..**_

_**I told you…**_

Josef had ignored her since before the wedding, left her shackled to a chaise in an upper bedroom, under the eye of a silent Cleaner. This gave her time for introspection, bringing regret for ignoring her Charles, for tempting this Charles, for adopting Emma's bitterness.

This sunset the other Jesse spoke to her, the one born in anger and self-preservation. Her feet on the tiles reinforced her existence as she bounded to the garage. For this "dark Jesse" there was no Josef or Charles or whatever he called himself in 2009. Without resolving "the List" there would be no more Jessica Cunningham, Josef had made that very clear.

_**Don't talk back, just drive the car, shut your mouth, I know what you are.**_

_**Don't say nothing, Keep your hands on the wheel, don't turn around, this is for real.**_

Jesse's linear logic told her that Josef sided with humans. He left her for Sarah Whitley, he coddled all his Freshies like prize cattle, he sidled up to a Freshie/attorney Simone and his best friend, Mick married a human.

While Emma's charade of a happily married woman dissolved with the death of her star athlete, Jesse agreed with Emma that humans should hold no quarter in their world. Together they would purge their society of vampires playing too long with their food, then slink off together to sooth each other's sores, sans Jackson.

Had Emma been honest with Jackson earlier about her dalliances, Jesse wouldn't have been left with the stain of their "parlor trick" on her hands. Talbot wouldn't be sniffing in Tribe business. Life could be the grand old party it always was.

The detritus was all she had. Alone in the Prius she didn't even have a destination to program into the system blinking at her. The amber sky gave way to blue black night while she piloted the silent car back and forth on twisted hillside roads to the pier, the last place she felt in control. Right now all she had were her wits, no phone, no money, and no allies.

The dry sand gave way to Jesse's bare feet as she ambled to the pilings where the sand packed hard, where the night was darkest. She tried to recall Josef's words; something about being glad vampires couldn't drown, because he would have thrown her to the roiling waters that day. "Think, god dammit", cursed as she sat on packed the wet surface, knees up to her chin.

The smells of raging hormones emanated to her right, they mixed with the sounds of teens fumbling at each other. She spied them, knowing their vista held only cold beer and a three pack of Trojans. She swallowed their ardor like wine, and their short breathes and sloppy open mouth kisses fed her for now. The tearing cellophane and harping ministration to "get that damn thing on" struck Jesse and she held herself to not laugh. The high school hunk was a minute man and within 10 minutes he was asleep fully on top of the nearly passed out brunette. This would be too easy, just about like fast food.

Jesse slipped to the couple without them waking. Scenting his excitement and joy on his first sexual conquest she anticipated the strong, vibrant aroma she loved in virile blood. Her approach gave her full bite to his thick neck, this bull of a boy graced her lips with resilience, and taking a longer draw on him she tasted his scorched innocence of taking a girl on a beach. Backing off she held a mouthful of the fruit of his youth, thick, intense without finesse. Swallowing she regained her footing, and then took a last sweeping mouthful, her sex heating as his orgasm's expression filtered to her. Enough, Jesse.

_**Digging in the dirt, Stay with me, I need support.**_

_**I'm digging in the dirt, to find the places I got hurt, to open up the places I got hurt, I got hurt.**_

_**The more I look, the more I find, as I close on in, I get so blind**_

_**I feel it in my head, I feel it in my toes, I feel it in my sex, that's the place it goes**_

She stepped back from the love-struck youths, not turning from them, but backed step by step, keeping her night vision focused on the rise and fall of their bodies in unison. With these steps she had gathered her resolve. She had been hurt, she wanted to hurt and when she did - it didn't make her hurt stop. She felt hated and that made it hurt even more.

She had fled, she had fed. She hadn't fought and it had been days since she had fucked.

"Jesse", his quiet voice asked as arms reached straight out for her shoulders, not a caress but a calm capture. A firm hand on each shoulder held her far from him.

_**Digging in the dirt, to find the places I got hurt**_

_**Digging in that dirt, to find the places we got hurt**_

_**I'm digging in the dirt, Stay with me I need support, I'm digging in the dirt**_

_**To find the places I got hurt, to open up the places I got hurt, I got hurt.**_

"Josef" she whispered without turning to him as she licked away the last of her meal.

Now her mind would be clearer.


End file.
